Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi with other Indian dignitaries at the event in Dubai.

Staff Reporter, Gulf Today

Indian Chartered Accountants are playing a great role in UAE’s growing economy as more than 8,000 Indian Chartered Accountants now manage the financial affairs of large business houses, according to senior government officials, who spoke at a major conference titled: Bridging the Gap: Health and Wealth, organised by the Dubai Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), which completed 40 years in the UAE.

“With more than 3,100 members in ICAI Dubai Chapter who manage 1,550 large businesses in Dubai, are significantly contributing to the growth of our economy,” Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said at the large gathering of business leaders, accounting professionals and government officials.

“Chartered Accountants, especially Indian Chartered Accountants, have now become some of the most successful business leaders in the UAE, who are contributing to the growth of our bilateral trade with India that exceeded US$49 billion last year.

“With the signing of the first Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India, the two-way trade and investment is going to grow further and I’m sure Indian business community and chartered accountants will play a great role in expanding bilateral economic relations.”

Chartered Accountants worldwide comprise 15 institutes with over 1.8 million chartered accountants and students in 190 countries.

ICAI has about 3,51,000 qualified chartered accountants based in India and abroad and 2,00,000 Article Assistants. Further, there are around 750,000 students enrolled in the chartered accountancy courses offered by the ICAI at the moment.

Currently the ICAI has its presence in 47 Countries having 45 Chapters and 33 Representative Offices across 77 Global cities. It has its overseas offices in Dubai and Singapore. Of the 8,000 Indian Chartered Accountants active in the UAE’s private sector, 1,400 are currently leading businesses as Chief Financial Officers, according to  Sunjay Sudhir, Indian Ambassador to the UAE.

India has recently overtaken its colonial ruler, the United Kingdom, to become the world’s 5th largest economy, he said. Explaining about New India,  Sunjay Sudhir, Indian Ambassador to the UAE, said, “8,000-strong Indian Chartered Accountants form the backbone of the UAE economy and being Indian; I’m proud of it. India broke free from colonialism 75 years ago. Modern India is about democracy, judiciary, digital India, startup India. Even in Covid times, India helped and connected the world.

“While more than 4 billion people in the world do not have digital identity, all Indians – more than 1.4 billion Indians now have digital identity. This is the new India. The future is sustainable development, and we are currently heading towards that direction,” he said.

“We are accelerating our efforts towards a clean and green society. Climate change and global warming can’t be dealt by governments only, it needs individuals to contribute. We have achieved the target of having 40 percent of the energy from non-fossil fuel sources, 9 years ahead of the target.”

The Dubai Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), which has emerged the largest overseas chapter of the ICAI with 3,100 members representing 1,550 businesses, has planned an ambitious roadmap for growth in 2023-24 with Sustainable Technology through Innovation at its heart.

Announcing the new roadmap, CA Harikishan Rankawat, the newly-elected Chairman of the new Executive Committee of ICAI Dubai Chapter said, his organisation has lined up several impactful events in line with the theme of the Year of Sustainability – which is being observed throughout the UAE in 2023.

“If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together. We have come a long way since the establishment of ICAI’s Dubai Chapter in 1982. In 40 years, we have become the largest overseas chapter of ICAI and further, we will grow together,” CA Harikishan Rankawat told the members.

“As you all would be aware that His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, has declared the theme ‘Sustainability’ for the year 2023, so I also decided to use the same theme for the year “Sustech through Innovation” which means Sustainable Technologies to be deployed by innovating new ideas. During the year, we will be focussing on Sustainability, Technology and Innovation.

“Today, we are announcing a new roadmap for the next one year. ICAI will organise more than 40 events, including four conferences including one on Sustainability. The second international conference will be on Cryptocurrency and Blockchain, the third conference will be on Real Estate while the fourth conference will be on Insurance.